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☆ Belgium to investigate Russian interference in EU elections
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-12 | by ( Luke Mcgee | Eve Brennan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Belgium will investigate suspected Russian meddling in European Parliament elections after the country’s intelligence services confirmed “pro-Russian interference networks,” Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said on Friday. “The cash payments did not take place in Belgium, but the interference does,” De Croo added. The next elections to the European Parliament will take place from June 6-9, according to the European Council. Far-right and populist parties, some of whom are considered sympathetic to the Kremlin, are expected to make gains at the European Parliament elections. European support for Ukraine has become increasingly important as US support for Kyiv has faltered in recent months.

Persons: Alexander De Croo, De Croo, ”, Viktor Orban –, Vladimir Putin –, Donald Trump Organizations: CNN, ”, EU, European Council, Russian, Kyiv Locations: Belgium, Russian, Ukraine, Europe, Moscow, Belgian, Russia, EU, Viktor Orban – Hungarian

☆ Six more years of Putin will worry many countries. But not China
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-17 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

A stable relationship with Moscow, too, allows Beijing to focus on other areas of concern such as Taiwan and the South China Sea. “Xi sees Putin as a genuine strategic partner,” said Steve Tsang, director of the SOAS China Institute at the University of London, ahead of the Russian election results, adding that anything less than a landslide win for Putin would be “a disappointment” for Beijing. The Russian leader has weathered an apparent miscalculation that what his government still calls a “special military operation” in Ukraine would be a swift success. Jose Colon/Anadolu Agency/Getty ImagesWatchful BeijingBut that doesn’t mean countries tied to Moscow aren’t also watching the conflict in Ukraine carefully. That may be especially true for China, Russia’s most powerful strategic partner.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN —, Vladimir Putin’s, Xi Jinping, Xi, Putin, Jens Stoltenberg, ”, Steve Tsang, Mao Zedong, won’t, Putin’s, Kim Jong Un, Kim, Kim Jong, Sergei Shoigu, Yevgeny Prigozhin, he’s, Alexey Navalny, –, BRICS, Jose Colon, Moscow aren’t, “, Eurasia Li Hui, Wang Yiwei, Putin –, Li Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Ukraine grinds, Kremlin, NATO, Washington, SOAS China Institute, University of London, Putin, Russia's, KCNA, Reuters, United Arab Emirates, Russian, Anadolu Agency, Getty, Moscow, Renmin University, Beijing, CNN Locations: China, Hong Kong, Russia, Taiwan, Beijing, Moscow, South China, North Korea, Russia’s Far, Washington, Pyongyang, South Korea, Iran, India, Ukraine, Vladivostok, Russian, United States, Brazil, South Africa, UAE, Ethiopia, Egypt, Russia’s Kazan, Crimea, Sochi, West, Israel, Gaza, Ukrainian, Eurasia, Europe, Beijing –

☆ Russian overseas voters have mixed views on whether their ballots are worth casting
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Anna Chernova | Lauren Kent | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Russia’s Central Election Commission said that overseas voting will take place at 288 polling stations in 144 countries, Russian state media TASS reported. During the 2018 presidential elections, 401 polling stations operated abroad and more than 475,000 people voted, according to the Central Election Commission as quoted by RIA Novosti. But this year, many overseas polling stations that operated in 2018 have been closed. Russian citizens at the Russian embassy in Berlin, Germany, look at a list of candidates in the 2018 Russian presidential election. A mourner lays flowers on the grave of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny at the Borisovo cemetery in Moscow on March 2, 2024, the day after Navalny's funeral.

Persons: Sergey Kulikov, Kulikov, ”, Vladimir Putin, –, Putin –, Joerg Carstensen, Luba Zakharov, ” Zakharov, Boris Nadezhdin, – Vladislav Davankov, Nikolai Kharitonov, Leonid Slutsky –, Alexey Navalny, Navalny’s, Yulia Navalnaya, Zakharov, “, Olga Maltseva, Anna, Putin, ” Anna, Putin …, ” Putin, Callum Fraser, Fraser, ” Fraser, Alexey Navalny’s, Ilya Yashin, Vladimir Kara, Boris Nemtsov, Anna Politkovskaya, ’, ” Kulikov Organizations: CNN, Kremlin, European, Human Rights, Russian Foreign Ministry, Russia’s, Commission, TASS, RIA Novosti, “, Central, Putin, Getty, Royal United Services Institute Locations: Russia, Dubai, Ukraine, Russian, Berlin, Germany, Hamburg, Moscow, AFP, Sheva, Israel

☆ Viktor Orbán meeting offers preview of Trump’s 2nd-term strongman idealizations
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Trump sees Orbán as the kind of strongman – unencumbered by legal and political restraints – that he’d like to be. Ahead of his meeting with the former president, Orbán endorsed Trump’s views on Ukraine, in what will have been music to Putin’s ears and will have added to alarm in Kyiv about what a second Trump term would mean. “It is not gambling but actually betting on the only sensible chance, that we in Hungary bet on the return of President Trump,” Orbán told an economic forum on Monday, Reuters reported. In a statement, Biden’s campaign rebuked Trump for meeting “Hungarian dictator Viktor Orbán, notorious for eroding his own country’s democracy and cozying up to Vladimir Putin (sound familiar? Much of Europe is already recoiling in horror over the possibility of a second term for Trump.

Persons: Viktor Orbán, Donald Trump, isn’t, Biden, CNN’s Betsy Klein, Trump, – unencumbered, Orbán, Vladimir Putin –, laud Orbán, he’s, ” Trump, –, ” Orbán, “, ”, Joe Biden’s, Putin, castigate Trump, ’ ” Biden, didn’t, ” Biden, Vladimir Putin Organizations: CNN, Biden, GOP, Trump, Conservative Political, NATO, European, EU, Reuters, Republicans, Republican Locations: Hungarian, United States, Orbán, Florida, Russian, Ukraine, New Hampshire, Hungary, Sweden, Kyiv, Russia, American, Europe, Budapest

☆ Why Zelensky’s plea will fall on many deaf Republican ears
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

CNN —There is a simple reason why many Republicans will snub Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s desperate plea for billions of dollars in arms and ammunition. He told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins in an interview in Kyiv Sunday that Republicans such as Trump ally Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance – who have been speaking out against more Ukraine aid – do not comprehend the stakes of the conflict. How Trump transformed the GOPThe Ukraine war funding showdown highlights how America’s domestic politics are already reverberating around the globe. The splits in the GOP over Ukraine were exposed last week when 26 Senate Republicans voted against the bill containing Israel and Ukraine aid while 22 backed it.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky’s, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, It’s, Zelensky, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, Ohio Sen, J.D, Vance –, –, ” Zelensky, Trump, Mitch McConnell, Vladimir Putin, Putin –, III, Biden –, Putin, Alexey Navalny, Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, George H.W, Bush, Matt Gaetz, ” Trump, Mike Johnson –, Biden, Johnson, ” Jake Sullivan, CNN’s Dana, •, • There’s, Vance, ” Vance, ’ ”, ” Zelensky –, CNN’s Collins, Avdiivka –, he’s Organizations: CNN, America, Republican, Kyiv Sunday, Trump, Ohio, GOP, NATO, Party, Trump Republicans, Conservative Political, Florida, Ukraine, White, Ukraine –, Munich, Conference, Republicans Locations: Europe, Russia, United States, Ukraine, Kyiv, Soviet, Washington, America, Mexico, “ State, South Carolina, European, China, Taiwan, Avdiivka, Israel, There’s

President Joe Biden laid the blame for Alexei Navalny's death squarely at the feet of Russian president Vladimir Putin on Friday, saying what happened to the imprisoned opposition leader is "yet more proof of Putin's brutality." He was principled," Biden said at the White House. Navalny envisioned a different Russia – one where the rule of law is respected, and "he knew it was a cause worth fighting for – and even worth dying for," Biden said. "Make no mistake: Putin is responsible for Navalny's death. In Munich, at an international security conference, world leaders mourned the loss of Navalny and cast accusatory eyes at Putin.

Persons: Joe Biden, Alexei Navalny's, Vladimir Putin, Biden, Alexei Navalny, Putin, Navalny, Donald Trump –, Navalny –, ” Biden, Kamala Harris, Trump, Truman, Mike Pence, –, ” Pence, Mike Johnson, Navalny's, Yulia Navalnaya, ”, Alexei, he’d Organizations: GOP, White, NATO, Biden, Trump, Republican Party, House Republicans, Louisiana Republican, Republican, Senate, Republicans Locations: Ukraine, Russian, Russia, United States, Louisiana, Munich

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Friday that the apparent death of Russian anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny brings new urgency to the need for Congress to approve tens of billions of dollars for Ukraine to stave off Moscow's invasion. Speaking at the White House, Biden said that no matter the cause, he holds Russian President Vladimir Putin responsible for Navalny's death. He added, “I hope to God it helps” push U.S. lawmakers to send more aid to Ukraine. Photos You Should See View All 33 ImagesThe president sharply criticized House Republicans for letting the chamber enter a two-week recess without moving on the Ukraine funding. “President Biden pledged ‘devastating’ consequences should Navalny die in prison; now he must follow through.

Persons: Joe Biden, Alexei Navalny, Biden, Vladimir Putin, hasn't, ” Biden, ”, Mike Johnson, “, Putin, ” Johnson, Donald Trump, Johnson, Hakeem Jeffries, ” Jeffries, Vladimir Putin’s, Republican Sen, Tom Cotton of, Trump’s Putin, Illinois Sen, Dick Durbin, Carolina Sen, Thom Tillis, Navalny, ” Tillis, eyeing, Harry Truman Organizations: WASHINGTON, White, Republicans, Ukraine, GOP House, Democratic, Senate, Republican, America, ” Lawmakers, Trump, NATO Locations: Russian, Ukraine, U.S, United States, Baltic, Russia, Israel, Taiwan, Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Tom Cotton of Arkansas, Illinois, ., Carolina, America

☆ Jailed Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny had long been a thorn in Putin’s side
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Laura Smith-Spark | Zamira Rahim | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

From prison, Navalny denounced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine via social media and encouraged anti-war protests across the country. Navalny was detained and sent to a Russian prison in 2021 after he had returned to Russia from Germany, where he was recovering from Novichok poisoning he blamed on the Russian government. Navalny took up Nemtsov’s mantle, becoming Russia’s most prominent opposition figure. Alexey Navalny was given a suspended sentence and his brother was sentenced to a prison term. Russia launched a new fraud accusation and jail threat against Navalny at the end of 2020, increasing pressure on him.

Persons: CNN — Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin, Navalny, Alexei Navalny, Dmitry Lovetsky, “, Putin, ”, Kira Yarmysh, Dmitry Peskov, Alexander Litvinenko, Novichok, Sergei Skripal, Russia’s, Boris Nemtsov, Alexey Navalny, ‘ Putin, Oleg, Yves Rocher, “ Putin, ” Navalny, Dasha Navalnaya, Margarita Kotova, gaunt, Alexey, –, Putin –, Alexander Nemenov, vociferously, I’m, Yulia Navalnaya Organizations: CNN, United, Kremlin, CNN Former, Getty, Corruption, Navalny, “, Moscow’s, Peoples University, Transneft, Court, of Human Locations: United Russia, Russia, Ukraine, Siberia, Germany, Moscow, CNN Former Russian, Britain, Russian, English, Salisbury, Siberian, Tomsk, Omsk, France, Sweden, Anadolu, Melekhovo, Vladimir Region, Butyn, AFP, Moscow’s

In the past, leading opposition figures in Putin’s Russia who stood up to him and who questioned his authority have tended to be dealt with harshly. Life in Putin's Russia View All 14 ImagesThe liberal Boris Nemtsov was killed, for instance, in 2015 outside the Kremlin (supposedly by agents linked to Putin’s FSB). He needs the election to be seen as “clean” as a means of cementing his legacy as Russian state leader. As leader, Putin has regularly been recorded as enjoying popular support. While Putin does appear now to enjoy a high degree of popularity in Russia (albeit largely media-engineered), this may not last.

Persons: Rod Thornton, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Tsar Peter the Great, Nikolai Kharitonov, Putin –, Yekaterina Duntsova, Boris Nemtsov, Alexei Navalny, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, –, Alexander Lukashenko Organizations: Communist, Kremlin, St, International Studies , Defense, Security, King's College Locations: Russia, Soviet, Ukraine, Putin’s Russia, Siberia, Navalny, London, Russian, Moscow, St Petersburg

☆ Opinion: When Biden meets Xi, there’s one obstacle he can’t overcome
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Opinion Frida Ghitis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Biden may want Xi to help bring down the temperature on the world’s ongoing wars and help prevent new ones from igniting. Although China occasionally tries to keep a façade of neutrality, there’s little question that it is aligned with Russia. White House officials have said Biden will provide “clarity” to Xi, on the US positions regarding Taiwan and Russia’s war against Ukraine. Still, there’s a limit to how much Xi can downplay the need for growth. Even so, Biden and Xi are likely to make some progress in an important and necessary meeting.

Persons: Frida Ghitis, Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Xi, Xi –, Vladimir Putin –, Barack Obama, ”, “, Nancy Pelosi’s, Saul Loeb, Biden, Mao Zedong Organizations: CNN, Washington Post, Politics, Frida Ghitis CNN, Biden, Central Military Commission, Israel, Kremlin, Hamas, US, Beijing, Getty, Ukraine, Communist Party, China Locations: California, Bali , Indonesia, China, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, Washington, Beijing, Iran, Tehran, Moscow, Taiwan, Indonesia, South China, White, Gaza

☆ Trump’s turn against Israel offers stark reminder of what his diplomacy looks like
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-13 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

“With President Trump back in office, Israel, and everyone else, will be safe again!” he said. Trump’s original grievance-based analysis reflects a transactional, unorthodox approach to foreign policy that often prioritizes his own personal goals over a standard understanding of the national interest. Trump’s comments were not the first time he has appeared to seek a political benefit from his foreign policy and his positions on Israel especially. They also show Trump’s quintessential contempt for the rules of politics, foreign policy and even basic human decency, which explain why he horrifies many Americans and foreign governments. “He’s simply not expressing, and his imitators in his primary, are not expressing the same muscular American foreign policy that we lived out every day,” Pence said on a local New Hampshire radio.

Persons: Donald Trump’s, Trump, Benjamin Netanyahu, he’d, they’d, Netanyahu, Qasem Soleimani, –, he’s, “, Chris Christie, ” Christie, ”, Israel ”, Joe Biden, Biden, Netanyahu –, Critics, Netanyahu Trump, America’s, ” Trump, Trump’s, nobody’s, Xi Jinping, Kim Jong, Vladimir Putin –, Putin, Israel, Soleimani, “ I’ll, Bibi Netanyahu, pounced, Ron DeSantis, “ Now’s, Donald Trump, ” DeSantis, Mike Pence, Pence, “ He’s, ” Pence Organizations: CNN, Israeli, Republican, Trump, GOP, New, New Jersey Gov, “, Fox News, Ukraine –, Putin, ABC News, Florida Gov Locations: Israel, American, Iraq, Lebanese, New Jersey, Gaza, Iran, Islamic Republic, Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, U.S, Florida, Korean, Ukraine, Helsinki, Russia, Lago, Australian, New Hampshire

☆ Nagorno-Karabakh crisis lays bare deteriorating Armenian relationship with Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-20 | by ( Clare Sebastian Anna Chernova Katharina Krebs Tim Lister Christian Edwards | Clare Sebastian | Anna Chernova | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh has come amid a sharp deterioration in the relationship between historic allies Armenia and Russia, and has been amplified by sometimes incendiary commentary from prominent individuals in Moscow. Armenia’s Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan accused Russian peacekeepers of failing to protect Nagorno-Karabakh from Azerbaijani aggression, according to state media Armenpress. The prominent Russian military blogger Rybar said Armenia was over reliant on Russia to provide security for Nagorno-Karabakh. Russia purports to provide security to Armenia through the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a military alliance of post-Soviet states that includes Armenia but excludes Azerbaijan. The Armenian authorities handed over the Armenian shrine with their own hands… The fate of Judas is unenviable.”Simonyan also wrote on Telegram about protests in Yerevan.

Persons: Nikol Pashinyan, Pashinyan, Armenia’s, Armen Grigoryan, Dmitry Peskov, Pashinyan’s, Anna Hakobyan, ” Pashinyan, Dmitry Medvedev, “, ”, ” Medvedev, Rybar, –, ” Rybar, Margarita Simonyan, Judas, ” Simonyan, ’ They’ve, Vladimir Solovyov, Lavrov, Putin, Ivan, ” Solovyov, Meduza Organizations: CNN, Armenian, Armenia’s Security, Kremlin, CNN Prima News, Russia, NATO, Collective Security, Organization, Twitter Locations: Nagorno, Karabakh, Armenia, Russia, Moscow, Yerevan, United States, Ukraine, Kyiv, “, Azerbaijan, Russian, Soviet

☆ Analysis: China's Xi Jinping skipping G20 may be part of his plan to reshape global governance
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Since its first leaders’ summit in 2008, China’s top leader has always attended the gathering – including by video link during the Covid pandemic. Now, “China sees the G20 space as increasingly oriented toward the US and its agenda, which Xi Jinping regards as hostile to China,” Werner said. Alternative governance structureXi last attended the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia, in November last year, when he emerged from China’s Covid isolation and declared his return to the world stage. All the while, Xi has only made two trips abroad this year – and both are central to his attempt to reshape the global world order. Next month, the Chinese leader is expected to host the Belt and Road Forum to mark the 10th anniversary of his global infrastructure and trade initiative – a key element in Beijing’s new global governance structure.

Persons: Jinping, Premier Li Qiang, Beijing’s reticence, Xi, ”, George Magnus, I’m, I’ve, Jake Werner, ” Werner, Biden, Werner, Happymon Jacob, China’s, Shi Yinhong, Joe Biden –, Antony Blinken, Vladimir Putin –, Magnus, they’re, ” Magnus, –, “ It’s Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Premier, China Center, Oxford University, “, Quincy Institute in, Quincy Institute in Washington DC, Pacific NATO, ”, India, New, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Divisions, Renmin University, EU, Beijing, Global Security Initiative, Global Development Initiative, Civilization Initiative, Forum, Shanghai Cooperation Organization – Locations: Hong Kong, New Delhi, China, Xi’s, India, United States, Quincy Institute in Washington, Beijing, New, Washington, Pacific, Ukraine, Moscow, Bali , Indonesia, Germany, France, Brazil, Indonesia, Johannesburg, South Africa, BRICS

☆ Analysis: India is hosting G20 as the world is in crisis but for Modi it's also a chance to shine
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Rhea Mogul | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Chinese leader Xi Jinping will be absent from the gathering, with Beijing giving no reason for the surprise miss – a move widely seen as a snub to India. Nevertheless, analysts say the gathering affords Modi a unique chance to shine on the world stage and flex India’s geopolitical muscle. India can act as a bridge,” said Kajari Kamal, associate professor at the Takshashila Institution in India. “For a long time, India was perceived as a nation of over 1 billion hungry stomachs,” Modi said in an interview with the Press Trust of India on Sunday. “It’s giving a great boost to infrastructure domestically, and to the world, it’s showcasing India’s culture and its rich heritage,” she added.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Modi, Modi’s statecraft, Xi Jinping, Vladimir Putin, Joe Biden, Mikhail Svetlov, ”, Kajari Kamal, ’, ” Modi, “, Kamal, It’s, Putin, Biden, Akhil Ramesh, Xi, Putin –, Michael Kugelman, it’s, Ramesh Organizations: CNN, Indian, Beijing, Kremlin, East, Takshashila, Press Trust of India, Pacific Forum, South Asia Institute, Wilson Center, Ukraine, White, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, SCO, Union, Pacific Locations: New Delhi, Ukraine, China, Russia, India, Russian, Moscow, Osaka, Japan, South, “, Australia, United States, Britain, East, Honolulu, Washington, Kremlin Moscow, Delhi

CNN —Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has said he warned Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin twice to watch out for threats to his life. “The first time was when I phoned him and negotiations (were taking) place while they were marching on Moscow,” Lukashenko told reporters in comments carried by Belarusian state news agency Belta on Friday. The Belarusian president said he suggested to Prigozhin that he could talk with Putin and “guarantee full security” in Belarus if he was concerned for his security, Belta reported. On Friday, the Kremlin said that examinations including genetic testing were underway to determine whether Prigozhin was killed in Wednesday’s plane crash. Russian authorities have yet to officially confirm Prigozhin’s death but have acknowledged the plane crash in public comments.

Persons: Alexander Lukashenko, Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, “, ” Lukashenko, Belta, ‘ Yevgeny, ‘, Prigozhin, Dmitriy Utkin, Prigozhin’s, Putin, Vladimir, Utkin, ’ it’s Putin Lukashenko, Lukashenko, ” Organizations: CNN, Belarusian, Kremlin, Russian Federal Air Transport Agency, Pentagon Locations: Moscow, Belarusian, Belarus, St . Petersburg, Prigozhin

☆ BRICS Summit: Who stands to benefit from Russia-friendly bloc's expansion?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

The group of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa has never been more prominent on the world stage. Russia’s leader can’t attend the summit because host country South Africa would be obliged to arrest him for alleged war crimes. But nonetheless that family is now entertaining formal bids from nearly two dozen countries to join their bloc of major emerging economies. It held its first summit in 2009 with four members and then added South Africa the following year. An expansion, instead of making the group more potent, could also make it “more unwieldy and ineffective” with more contrasting positions between members, he added.

Persons: can’t, It’s, Russia’s Vladimir Putin –, Putin, Cyril Ramaphosa, BRICS, ” “, Chen Xiaodong, Bhaso, “, China’s Xi, India’s Narendra Modi, Brazil’s Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, –, Goldman Sachs, Jim O’Neill, BRICS Anil Sooklal, Mihaela Papa, ”, Xi, Yun Sun, Putin –, Manoj Kewalramani, Kewalramani, Modi, Lula, Ramaphosa, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Wagner, Rubens Duarte Organizations: CNN, West, Washington, Sunday, University of Johannesburg, New Development Bank, United Arab, Tufts University, Western, China Program, Stimson, NATO, Takshashila, United Nations Locations: South Africa, Brazil, Russia, India, China, Beijing, United States, New Delhi, Ukraine, African, Argentina, Mexico, Iran, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Nigeria, Bangladesh, South, Washington, BRICS, Bangalore, Johannesburg, Russian, – China, Africa, Europe

☆ Russia's economic isolation from the West is deepening its China dependency – car imports from the Asian nation shot up 540%
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Joseph Wilkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russian imports of Chinese cars rocketed 543% in the first half, local media reported. Russia now gets 70% of its imported cars from China, compared with just 10% prior to the Ukraine war. That highlights Russia's growing economic dependency on China – thanks to Moscow's deepening from the West. Before the Ukraine war, Chinese cars made up just 10% of Russia's car imports, according to the report. Xi has not publicly condemned Russia's war on Ukraine and continues to ramp up trading ties with Moscow.

Persons: Putin, Cui Dongshu, Vladimir Putin, Xi Organizations: Service, Motors, Ford, Mercedes, Benz, RBC, Federal Customs Service, European Union, –, China Passenger Car Association, Global Times, UN Security Council Locations: Russia, China, Ukraine, Wall, Silicon, – Russia, Western, Moscow

☆ India downplays SCO Summit but Putin and Xi may not be complaining
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-05 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Hong Kong CNN —Last year, the world watched closely as China’s Xi Jinping, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Narendra Modi of India and other world leaders within a Moscow-friendly group gathered in the Uzbek city of Samarkand for a high-profile, two-day summit. World leaders pose for a photo during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on September 16, 2022. It remains unknown how tight a grip Putin now has on power in Moscow, and although he attended last year’s SCO summit, he has rarely left Russia since his invasion of Ukraine. Face-to-face meetings, however, can also provide opportunity for world leaders to talk out sensitive issues or push on points of contention that may be handled less delicately in a virtual setting. Given their respective ties with Moscow, both China and India have received pressure from the West to limit their relations or even push Putin toward peace.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN —, Xi, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Narendra Modi, Putin –, Putin, Modi –, –, Modi, ”, Manoj Joshi, India didn’t, Murat Kula, what’s, Wagner, Steve Tsang, It’s, “, Moritz Rudolf, Paul Tsai, Tsang, Putin “ Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, SCO, “, Observer Research, Anadolu Agency, Getty, SOAS China Institute, University of London, Moscow, Paul Tsai China Center of, Yale Law School, Central, Soviet, Ukraine Locations: Hong Kong, India, Moscow, Uzbek, Samarkand, Ukraine, Eurasia, Russia, China, New Delhi, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, –, Iran, Washington, ”, Europe, Beijing, Belarus, Central Asia, Soviet Union

☆ Insight: Young Russian lawyers step up to defend anti-war protesters
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Lucy Papachristou | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

"I have always had a keen sense of justice," Gominova told a Reuters reporter based in Poland. "Defending protesters in court is my version of protest," said Gominova, who began representing anti-war activists in court almost immediately after the invasion. With numerous civil society groups disbanded by the state, many other lawyers also defend anti-war activists independently, but it is hard to determine how many. Several Russian lawyers have attracted the attention – and condemnation – of authorities, not only for defending critics of the invasion but also for expressing their own opposition. Before the Ukraine conflict, Gominova, in St Petersburg, worked mainly on civil cases ranging from family disputes to consumer rights.

Persons: Young, acquittals, Sofia Gominova, Gominova, Violetta Fitsner, Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Russia's, Evgenia Kara, Vladimir, Vadim Prokhorov –, Putin –, Prokhorov, Dmitry Talantov, Ivan Safronov, Maria Bontsler, Anastasia Rudenko, George Orwell's, Yuri Mikhailov, Mikhailov, Filipp Lebedev, Gabrielle Tetrault, Farber, Mike Collett, White, Mark Trevelyan, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Russia, Ukraine Lawyers, Petersburg Bar Association, Moscow Bar, Russia's, Ministry, Russian Federation, Reuters, U.S, of America, Facebook, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, acquittals Moscow, Russia, Soviet Union, Poland, St . Petersburg, St, Petersburg, Moscow, Ivanovo, Russian, St Petersburg, Tbilisi, Geneva

☆ Russia is wracked by mutiny and mistakes. Ukraine will seek to take advantage
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Nick Paton Walsh | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

But the Russian military may have panicked at seeing mercenaries advance on Moscow and sent help. Wagner forces drove tanks into Rostov-on-Don on June 24, 2023. Firstly, there must have been a radical impact on Russian military morale. Might an earthquake on the battlefield inadvertently rally Moscow’s elite around him, to stave of an existential defeat for Russia as a nation in Ukraine? Moscow’s mistakes have been so plentiful over the past months, at some point Ukraine will likely seize the initiative.

Persons: Wagner, Hanna Mailar, Wagner’s, STRINGER, won’t, Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Putin –, –, Putin’s, Prigozhin's, Putin, ”, Napoleon Organizations: CNN, Rivnopil, Getty, NATO, Troops, Russia Locations: Moscow, Ukraine, Bakhmut, Donetsk, Mariinka, Russian, Rostov, AFP, Kyiv, Russia, Belarus, Soviet Union, Ukrainian

☆ Analysis: Vladimir Putin's humiliation will require the West to reexamine its balancing act to save Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Stephen Collinson | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +11 min

CNN —The world just got a hint of a tantalizing but possibly even more dangerous future without Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Western stakes in the Ukraine war rose significantly as a result. There’s now no doubt that the war Putin unleashed to wipe Ukraine off the map poses an existential threat to his political survival. This would be good news for the West, which has bankrolled and armed the country’s fight for its life. After this weekend, this new reality will require the West to once again examine its balancing act to save Ukraine.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Prigozhin flagrantly, Prigozhin’s Wagner, –, Putin, There’s, Oz, Ukraine John Herbst, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, “ Putin, Prigozhin’s, Moscow’s, Prigozhin –, Africa –, Prigozhin, he’s, CNN’s Kevin Liptak, Biden, ”, David Petraeus, Petraeus, “, Ramzan Kadyrov, Wagner, Robert English, Alexei Navalny, Alexander Lukashenko, “ It’s, Antony Blinken, placated –, Blinken, Will Hurd, ” Hurd, Hurd –, Donald Trump –, Trump Organizations: CNN, White, Kremlin, NATO, Western, Russian Federation, Union, CIA, Internet Research Agency, School of International Relations, University of Southern, Belarusian, ”, Republican, GOP, Moscow Locations: Ukraine, Moscow, Europe, Belarus, Russian, Russia, Syria, Africa, France, Britain, Germany, Washington, “ State, University of Southern California, NATO, Crimea, Texas

Moscow CNN —Some Russians greeted the weekend’s armed insurrection led by the head of the Wagner paramilitary group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, with sympathy, appearing to welcome the mercenary fighters. Roman Romokhov/AFP/Getty ImagesLocals were also seen booing police cars that arrived as the Wagner fighters vacated Rostov-on-Don on Saturday, in an abrupt de-escalation. Over the weekend, checkpoints had been set up on Moscow’s outskirts, and residents braced for Wagner fighters to enter. Maxim Shemetov/Reuters“It was really uneasy yesterday,” Moscow resident Andrey told Reuters, “But look now, people are walking in the streets and it’s all good. But that sentiment runs counter to the messaging from the Kremlin, which has painted Prigozhin and his Wagner fighters as traitors to Russia.

Persons: Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, “ Wagner, Moscow –, Vladimir Putin, “, Roman Romokhov, ”, Dmitry, Natalia Kolesnikova, Maxim Shemetov, Andrey, ” Oleg, Prigozhin’s, Irada Zeynalova, Prigozhin, Alexander Lukashenko, Alexander Ermochenko, Don, Putin, hasn’t, Putin – Organizations: Moscow CNN —, Kremlin, Southern Military District, Getty, Rostov, Don, ”, Reuters, NTV, Belarusian, Fighters, CNN Locations: Moscow, Russian, Rostov, AFP, ” Rostov, Moscow’s, Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Don

CNN —Nikki Haley, the former South Carolina governor and 2024 Republican presidential contender, sharply criticized the party’s top-polling candidates in a CNN town hall in Iowa on Sunday. “This is bigger than Ukraine,” Haley said during the CNN town hall, “this is a war about freedom and it’s one we have to win. “I don’t trust the government to deal with red flag laws. Red flag laws or “extreme risk protection orders,” as Michigan Gov. On the trail, Haley has called for raising the retirement age for people currently in their 20s and limiting Social Security and Medicare benefits for wealthier Americans.

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☆ ‘A problem in the political culture": Serbians call for more than disarmament to end violence after mass shootings
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( Christian Edwards | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Despite having one of the world’s highest rates of gun ownership in the world, mass shootings like this are extremely rare in Serbia. Most people simply inherited weapons from their parents and grandparents – remnants of the sort of violence that no longer plagues the region. While the two “gratuitous” acts of violence that shocked the country this month were without precedent, O’Donnell said, other types of violence are more banal. ‘Serbia against violence’Since the shootings, tens of thousands of Serbians have taken to the streets in opposition-led “Serbia against violence” marches, demanding the resignation of several government ministers. Against this public demand for a mellowing of the political culture, Vučić has seemed unsure how to respond.

We are not bound by the West’s sanctions,” Erdogan told CNN’s Becky Anderson. APBy contrast, Erdogan has doubled down on his relationship with Putin – and he thinks the West should follow suit. “This was possible because of our special relationship with President Putin,” he told CNN, referring to the grain deal. In his interview with CNN, Erdogan tackled another key flashpoint in Turkish tensions with the West: Sweden’s accession to NATO. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan tells CNN's Becky Anderson, left, he expects voters who value stability and confidence to back him in the May 28 runoff vote.

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